Zombie Mode at the Pool

I was running on two hours of sleep and three iced americanos, which basically meant I was operating in full zombie mode. The swim team had regionals tomorrow, and Coach Martinez had us doing 'finals week' practices — double sessions that left me feeling like the walking dead.

'Liv, you good?' Maya asked, side-eyeing me in the hallway. 'You look like you've been binge-watching The Last of Us instead of sleeping.'

'Swimming happened to me,' I muttered, which was our code for 'Coach Martinez happened to me.'

That's when I saw him: Tyler from AP Chem, standing way too close to MY locker. And he wasn't just standing there — he was sliding a folded note through the vents.

Okay, pause. I know how this sounds. But I wasn't trying to be a spy or anything. My locker just happened to be perfectly positioned behind that concrete pillar, and I happened to be walking quietly because my legs were dead from laps. Blame the lack of sleep for my zero impulse control.

I waited until he booked it down the hall, then booked it myself to see what he'd put there. My hands were literally shaking. A note? In MY locker? Was this actually happening?

I opened the locker and grabbed the paper, my heart doing that whole fluttery thing that felt totally wrong given my zombie status.

*Meet me at the pool tonight. 10 PM. — T*

I stared at it for a solid thirty seconds. Tonight? 10 PM? The pool closed at 8.

But here's the thing about being seventeen and exhausted: your decision-making skills basically vanish. So I did what any rational, sleep-deprived, slightly delusional person would do.

I showed up.

The pool area was pitch black except for this tiny emergency light, and the water looked like liquid silver in the darkness. I was creeping around like I was in some low-budget spy movie when suddenly —

'SURPRISE!'

Like, twenty people jumped out from behind the bleachers.

Tyler was holding a cake that said GOOD LUCK TOMORROW ZOMBIE in blue frosting.

'We figured you needed actual motivation,' Maya said, emerging from the shadows with a bunch of balloons. 'Since coffee clearly isn't cutting it.'

My face was so hot I could've powered the pool heater. 'You guys...'

'Also,' Tyler added, rubbing the back of his neck, 'I kinda needed an excuse to talk to you without everyone making it weird.'

Maya mouthed 'HE TOLD YOU' at me from behind his back.

I laughed so hard I almost fell into the pool. Turns out being a zombie isn't the worst thing in the world — especially when your friends are secretly amazing, and the cute guy from AP Chem has been planning this for weeks.

'So,' Tyler said, 'wanna get some cake? Or are you too dead for sugar?'

'I'm never too dead for cake,' I said.

And I wasn't. Not anymore.